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“What is it? Where’s it from?” If I had a dollar for every time I was asked those questions during my time with the Spyker C8 Aileron in and around Pebble Beach, my bank manager would be my new very best friend. The Spyker C8 Aileron is a quirky, hand-built sports car powered by a mid-mounted Audi 4.2-liter V-8. And it’s made in …Holland.

Holland is famous for many things, but automaking is not one of them. But Holland does have an automotive history. Truckmaker DAF once built cars, and company founder Hubert van Doorne invented the continuously variable transmission. Spyker predates DAF — coachbuilders Jacobus and Hendrik-Jan Spijker built their first car in 1898, and the 60/80-hp model of 1903 featured a six cylinder engine, all-wheel drive, and four wheel disc brakes. Spyker also built fighter planes and aero engines during World War I.

Spyker cars (the brothers changed the spelling to make pronunciation easier for foreigners) enjoyed a reputation for quality engineering, but the company went out of business in 1925.

Fast forward 75 years. Victor Muller, a Dutch lawyer with a talent for buying and selling companies, and a passion for cars — his personal collection has included Ferraris, Rolls-Royces, Lancias, Maseratis, Alfa Romeos — unveils the Spyker C8 at the 2000 Birmingham Motor Show. The name might be old, but the extravagantly detailed roadster it’s bolted to is all new.

It would be easy to dismiss Victor Muller as a wealthy dilettante with an Enzo Ferrari complex. In the nine years since launching the C8, his tiny company has made just 257 cars and has yet to turn a profit. But spend a few minutes with Muller, and his passion, his enthusiasm, his sheer determination to succeed are obvious.

The Spyker C8 Aileron looks an evolution of the original Spyker C8, but is pretty much all new. It has a 5.9 -in. longer wheelbase, a 6.1-in. wider front track, and the aluminum space frame now features cast nodes instead of riveted joints for improved rigidity. It shares its forged aluminum control-arm suspension with the new Lotus Evora, and the big disc brakes are AP Racing items. The mid-mounted Audi V-8 develops 400 hp, and drives the rear wheels through either a six speed Getrag manual transmission or a six speed ZF automatic from the Audi A8 sedan modified for two wheel drive.

The mechanicals are wrapped in aluminum bodywork designed by Muller himself. The attractive form is fairly generic mid-engine sports car stuff made lively by whimsical detailing that recalls Spyker’s aviation heritage — the side and roof mounted air intakes are shaped like jet engine housings, for example — and lashings of aluminum and stainless steel brightwork.

Spyker interiors have always been flamboyant, and the C8 Aileron is no exception. Almost everything is covered in leather, and if it’s not, it’s bright aluminum or steel. The engine-turned dash is littered with switches — aircraft-spec items that cost $50 each, says Muller — that control everything from the air conditioning to a valve that by-passes the mufflers on the stainless steel exhaust system. The only item that’s obviously not Sypker bespoke is the Audi R8 steering wheel, though if you have sharp eyes and a head full of Italian automobile trivia, you might recognize the door handles — they’re remanufactured 1970s Alfa Romeo Spyder items.

Glass roof panels flood the interior with light, and ensure good headroom for taller drivers. We snuggle into the seats, pull the Lamborghini-style scissor doors shut, and reach for the aircraft-style main power switch in the center of the dash. Lift up the red cover, toggle the switch, punch the starter button immediately below it, and the Audi V-8 rumbles into life.

Our tester, one of the first half dozen C8 Ailerons built, has barely 35 miles on the odometer. It’s been flown straight from Holland to Pebble Beach, where it will be used for display purposes during the Concours d’Elegance weekend. But Muller, who’s been coming to Pebble for 19 years, frequently showing his own cars in the Concours, has wangled us a place in the Tour d’Elegance, a gentle run down scenic Highway 1 to Big Sur. Ours is the only post-1965 car in the group; a spaceship among towering Duesenbergs and Packards, delicate Bugattis and Lancias, elegant Delahayes and Ferraris.

Our drive is therefore a fairly sedate cruise, which is probably a good thing, as the C8 Aileron clearly has yet to go through proper pre-delivery. I notice a strange binding sensation in the steering at one point, and the brakes stick on for a bit, filling the cabin with the pungent aroma of toasted pads. But after a few miles, the car settles down and begins to behave.

The ride is excellent for a 3150 lb car rolling on meaty 235/35 and 295/30 series 19-inch Michelin Pilot Sport tires, and once the steering frees up, it feels nicely weighted with linear responses. It turns out that in addition to supplying the Evora suspension components, Lotus engineers also fine-tuned the C8 Aileron’s ride and handling, and even at our low cruising speeds, you can feel the hand of Hethel at work.

The Audi V-8 is all you’d expect; smooth and fuss-free. The automatic transmission calibration needs some work, however — rather than surfing the 354 lb-ft of torque and keeping everything relaxed, the ZF six speed tends to default to lower gears even in regular drive mode. Fortunately, manual control is available via steering column mounted paddles.

We’ll have a C8 Aileron back for a more comprehensive test in a few weeks. But our brief, gentle drive was enough to confirm two things: First, this Spyker is certainly an eye catching ride. Second, there is no logical reason why you’d spend $218,000 on one in preference to a Ferrari F430, Lamborghini Gallardo, or an Audi R8. Next to these slickly calibrated products of multi-million dollar research and development budgets, the C8 Aileron feels exactly like you’d expect an enthusiastically hand-built automobile to feel. It has flaws. It has quirks. It has some pieces that don’t quite fit right.

None of that fazes Victor Muller, though. He’s determined his tiny company can offer a viable sports car alternative for a handful of wealthy buyers who simply don’t want to be seen driving a Ferrari or Lambo or Audi R8 like all their buddies. Spyker will build just 25 to 30 C8 Ailerons this year, and even when the $238,000 Spyder version is launched, total C8 Aileron production will likely be barely more than 100 or so cars a year.

2009 News and Reviews

A month ago, we were the first to give you the first behind the wheel impression of the new Spyker C8 Aileron from a brief cruise at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.In that piece, we covered all the basics of the car, from the brand's Dutch roots and quirky airplane-influenced style to the Aileron's turned aluminum dash and $50-a-pop toggle…